The Empire v The Colonies

Got to admit I surprised myself by getting up at four this morning to watch South Korea v Greece. I’ve said I wanted to be “all-in” during this World Cup (well, almost) so this is good prep for the upcoming week with two Holland games at 4:30am.

And I’m glad to say the South Koreans made it worth my while to be up so early as I was treated with some fantastic footy. Hiring Guus Hiddink back in the turn of the century was probably the best decision South Korea made because his legacy was there for all to see: A highly effective possession game played at a high tempo with energy, industry and intelligence. They were like Holland of Asia. Granted their opponent was not the 2004 version of Greece but I was shocked by how disorganized the Greeks looked. Their campaign may have ended today.

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Say what you want about Maradona being the manager of his country – count me as one of the critics of his hire – the man does not lack passion. His claim to run around naked if Argentina wins the World Cup is proof of that. I’m sure most people DO NOT want to see that happen but when you have someone like Leo Messi on your team, anything is possible. He was mesmerizing throughout and definitely the Man of the Match for me despite missing some glorious opportunities to get on the score sheet. That being said, the Nigerian keeper was excellent today and the only reason a single goal separated the two teams. Maybe I’m wrong to dismiss the Albicelestes because of Maradona. We shall find out.

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Today was day two of Slash’s stag and whole bunch of us went to the neighborhood watering hole to watch the match near and dear to a lot of our hearts. I was all dressed up with the top hat, the England shirt and the St. George flag as a cape. It was fun to be with the lads but I found the rest of the pub a bit subdued. Maybe a trip to the British Ex-Servicemen Association is in order.

I was disappointed but not surprised by the end result. Ever since WC 2002, England has never looked convincing in first round matches and that trend is about to continue. But that Robert Green howler was just inexcusable and I’m quite interested to find out how the English press will react to this latest debacle. Ultimately, I believe goal differentials will decide the group so Capello must find a way to get Rooney and Gerrard playing closer together and further up the pitch. Otherwise it’s three and out for the three lions.